Skip to main content

Steve Reich – Different Train Listening Report

 

“Different Trains” by Steve Reich is a composition of tape recording of typical noises that can be found at a train station. In addition to the train noises, string instruments seem to be the guiding factor. Reich used whistle, bell, and squeaking metal noises to create rhythmic patterns. Lyrically, he used the tape recording of expressions that can be heard at a typical train station – “To Chicago”, “You are on the fastest train”, “From New York to Los Angeles” and the leitmotif of this piece “I think there are different trains”. There are also different years mentioned. This could mean that he used tape recording that were recorded years prior to the composition. I think this is an interesting piece because it does not rely completely on the use of non-instruments. In contrast to other works, we looked at, “Different Trains” uses the musical help of string instruments. His intention could lie more in the actual meaning of what is being said. Later in the musical piece, a man says, “Black Crows invades this country”. Reich could have interpreted the typical train station as a metaphor or demonstration of the societal condition of that time. The voice recordings seem to originate from an English-speaking country but the version by the London Contemporary Orchestra features visual elements that show footage of German concentration camps in WW2. This and other comments within the musical piece, “War is over” or “Are you sure?”, indicate that the second World War is the main subject. Trains were not just used to transport war equipment but to transport prisoners to the deadly camps. So different trains had different meanings for their passengers. So, for Reich, trains and train stations are not just a representation of societal conditions or biases but the very thing that can mean life or death.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Listening Report on John Oswald: Plexure

 Sarah Kumar Dr. Bernd Herzogenrath The Future of (American) Music 06 Mar. 2023 Listening Report on John Oswald: Plexure According to John Oswald, “[a] plunderphone is a recognizable sonic quote, using the actual sound of something familiar which has already been recorded” (Lecture Slides 18). However, only if the source stays recognizable can it be called plunderphonics. In his album Plexure , several songs are played back and mixed together, thus creating a new sound. This is interesting because while the excerpts of songs that are used are recognizable or at least sound familiar to some degree, played backwards and mashed up as they are in Plexure , they create a new sound. Like on the cover of the album, on which a collage making up a man can be seen, the mixing of different songs played backwards gives a new feeling to something known. The way the songs are mixed makes them unintelligible. The meaning of the words of the original recordings are not able to be compr...
Post a Comment
Read more

William Basinski – The Disintegration Loops III

  The Disintegration Loops is a quartet of albums published in 2002 and 2003 by American avant-garde composer William Basinski. The pieces are made up of tape loop recordings that were played over time, with noise and crackles rising as the tape deteriorated. Basinski noticed this effect when attempting to convert his older recordings to digital format. The completion of the recordings coincided with the September 11, 2001 events, which Basinski witnessed and adds a deeper meaning to the composition. The composition is fascinating in many ways and makes the listener lose track of time. The tape loop recording had a very calming effect on me and put me in a trance-like state when I listened to it in its entirety. The tape loop is really soothing, so much so that I didn't even notice the loss of quality when I first listened to it. It makes you forget about time and allows you to really get into the piece capturing the calmness it exudes. You forget or don't really notice how i...
Post a Comment
Read more

Pierre Schaeffer - Étude pathétique

  Pierre Schaefer begins the piece with sounds produced by drums and similar percussion instruments. One hears the sound of an object spinning and then coming to a stop. I assume it is a circular object, like a cymbal or hi-hat of a drum kit, that spins until it comes to a stop. Sounds of a locomotive follow, continuing with a mixture of drums and spinning objects as well as voices. There are slight parallels here with another piece by Schaeffer, "etude aux chemins de fer," in which he has the musical piece consist of sounds of trains and locomotives. I also recognize an accordion and a violin playing rapidly, accompanied by human sounds that are not really decipherable. By combining all these background sounds and using human voices, Schaeffer creates an exciting atmosphere while listening to the piece, and the listener's auditory senses are constantly challenged to decipher all the details of the sounds. At times one could be reminded of a scene from a scary movie, at l...
Post a Comment
Read more